Everybody's Fool
by Lil Rose Angel
Summary: HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Knowledge is power, but is it really? It can be the most hurtful of things, as Francoise finds something she was never meant to discover. A little bit of 009003, and a bit OOC. Be warned, this isn't a very happy story.


Hi again! I haven't written in a long time, have I? I'm really sorry, but I've had writers block for what seems like the past decade, plus the load of homework I'm getting. I dunno why I'm writing now, but I guess I just felt like writing, plus I thought I should give everyone on the C009 fanfiction a small gift. Hey, it's the thought that counts! Right? Anyway, it was Christmas Eve, and I was listening to Evanescence on my iPod, and the idea just popped into my head!! Sorry if the song doesn't fit the story, and if the storyline and characters are very OOC… This isn't the average happy couple, just so you know…

_Disclaimer: I don't own C009, or Evanescence. Although, they're welcome as Christmas presents!!_

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**Title: Everybody's Fool**

A single, solitary figure sat at the window, gazing up at the star-sprinkled night sky. It was breathtaking, a wondrous sight of the celestial bodies of space. Francoise smiled sadly, thinking about her past, when Jean-Paul had taught her about the constellations the small sparkles made. She had never understood it, always looking at it as some childish connect-the-dots puzzle. Aquamarine eyes tore their gaze from the marvelous blanket of stars and surveyed their surroundings, taking all of its décor, from the teddy-bear wallpaper to the various articles of clothing scattered upon the floor, before coming to a rest at a small bundle that rested within the confines of a stark-white crib. The former dancer rose, still retaining her gracefulness and walked over the being that she had acted as a surrogate mother for.

_perfect by nature_

_icons of self indulgence_

_just what we all need_

_more lies about a world that_

_never was and never will be_

_have you no shame don't you see me_

_you know you've got everybody fooled_

Francoise stroked the baby's round, plump cheeks fondly, and a sweet smile graced her features and he fidgeted under her touch, unconsciously reaching for the source of the caress. His wandering hands found her own and grasped it, his chubby fingers curling around her delicate ones. Francoise wrapped her hand around his, and squeezed, eyelashes fluttering to a close as she gently relinquished his hand and bent down to press her lips gently to his forehead, lingering, as if she didn't want to let go. As she left the room, her eyelids rose, revealing luminous pools of aqua. She strode through the corridors, her golden locks cascading down onto her shoulders, swinging back and forth with her movement. Her swift pace was halted by a rather interesting scene.

Her teammates had obviously fallen asleep during, "Movie Night". Tentatively, Francoise stepped into the living room, careful as not to wake her slumbering friends. Although, that wasn't a very proper name to call them now. They were a lot closer than just friends; they were her family, the only family she had known, ever since her abduction by Black Ghost had taken her away from her blood family. They were everything a family wasn't but somehow, under all the arguments and stiffness, a family had emerged, as full and bright as any other, perhaps brighter. Every one of them had lost something when Black Ghost had made them into cyborgs, but the rest of their teammates had made up for it. Despite big egos, and cool facades, she knew every one of them have come to regard the rest with respect and affection, whether they would admit or not was another matter entirely.

Francoise observed her family, sprawled on the various sofas and rugs, moonlight casting flickering shadows on their faces. She looked at them with concern, because of their uncomfortable positions, but didn't want to wake them, knowing that they would be embarrassed that she had found them in such undignified positions. Instead, she took some blankets off a nearby easy chair and draped the sheets over their bodies. She had prepared for this, knowing her "brothers" all too well. Gently, she took G.B's hand out of his mouth, placed it on his stomach, and wiped a thin line of drool off his cheek. He then rolled over, sticking his hand again into his mouth, muttering something about incompetent chefs.

Making her way through the bodies, tucking a bit of blanket here, brushing back specks of hair there, she couldn't help but notice one was missing. She felt her heart clench, sending an unpleasant shudder throughout her body, then brushed it away, knowing full well where that body was, but hoping against hope that she was wrong. Stepping over a particularly stout body, her enhanced hearing picked up a mumble that issued from the chef's mouth, which sounded suspiciously like, "…no taste whatsoever, wouldn't know good food if it came up to you and smacked you with a frying pan…" The ends of her lips turned upwards slightly, shaking her head at their bickering, even in sleep.

_look here she comes now_

_bow down and stare in wonder_

_oh how we love you_

_no flaws when you're pretending_

_but now i know she_

_never was and never will be_

_you don't know how you've betrayed me_

_and somehow you've got everybody fooled_

As she neared the doorway that would take her to the balcony, Francoise dropped, her gaze drawn to a picture hanging on the wall. A nostalgic expression made its way across her as she remembered when the picture had been taken. It was a day at the beach; Doctor Gilmore had finally let the cyborgs have a well-deserved break. Life had been so wonderful then, they had finally beaten Black Ghost, and everything had become normal again. In the picture, Jet was airborne, chasing G.B, whose face was split in half with a huge grin and was holding a pair of headphones and a CD player in front of him, just out of reach of Jet's furious hands. Aside from those two, the rest of the 00 cyborg team was in place, smiling for the camera. Her face lit up with a smile, remembering how the Ivan had complained about being squeezed by the two men beside him. Although, Francoise didn't know what he was complaining about—she was the one holding the aforementioned baby, and standing between Albert and…Joe. The smile was gone as suddenly as it came, and replaced by a look of heart-wrenching sorrow. She tore her gaze away from the happy picture and walked to the balcony, taking in a gulp of night air.

A soft breeze caressed her face, blowing her golden locks gently away from her shoulders. Leaning on the railing, Francoise surveyed the tranquil ocean, its waters splashing along the rocks below. It amazed her that this peaceful, still body of water, when angered could be one of the most powerful, most destructive, most frightening forces on Earth. So absorbed the petite dancer was, she didn't notice a figure approaching her until it was too late.

"What brings you here?" a light tenor inquired. Her breath caught in her throat, heart skipping a beat as she registered the voice in her brain. Taking several silent yet deep breaths in an effort to calm herself down, she replied hastily, and with what she hoped was an indifferent voice,

"I felt like getting some fresh air."

"Oh." Her lithe body tensed as he walked up to the railing as well, gazing upwards, into the sky, pitch-black save for the clusters of starts scattered on it.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yes, very."

"Francoise."

_without the mask where will you hide_

_can't find yourself lost in your lie_

"Yes?" Francoise's gaze remained on the water, eyes hardening as she answered with a clipped tone. The silence after that was deafening, lasting for what seemed like an eternity.

"Francoise, look at me." His impatient voice sliced through the tension like a knife through butter. She turned to him, glaring into his own cinnamon eyes.

"Francoise, what's going on?"

"Nothing."

"You're lying; you've been avoiding me for the past week!" He took hold of her shoulders, and shook them slightly, as if he was trying to shake the answers out of her.

"Don't touch me." He drew back, like he'd been burned, looking at her with confusion written all over his features. Her glare, if possible, intensified even further, her aquamarine orbs morphing into blue flames.

"You want to know what's wrong with me? It's you. You think you're so innocent and happen to have got the worst life ever, has it ever occurred to you that you might not be the only one in the world suffering? Well, this might come as a surprise to you—you're not!" She took a deep breath, scowling at the change on his face. Eyes wide, mouth slightly agape, he looked like a naïve child, but she knew better. She had learned her lesson, learning never to trust any of his masks again.

"Stop that, you know perfectly well I won't buy any of your pitiable looks again." Francoise winced at her bitter tone, surprised that those words came out of her own mouth, but she couldn't stop. Joe was rather shocked as well, albeit his reaction was totally different. His eyes narrowed into angry slits as he glared back at her.

_i know the truth now_

_i know who you are_

_and i don't love you anymore_

"Shut up." Her eyes widened, trying to ignore the feeling that was brewing inside of her, tearing her to pieces. Even though she knew about his nighttime escapades, she couldn't help feeling shocked when he stopped her so harshly.

"Francoise, you think you know so much about me, but you're wrong. You know nothing about me."

"Oh really? Would you like to inform me then? How about starting with your nightly adventures?" Her voice was cold and indifferent, a drastic change from her normal tone. Joe froze when he heard his question, realization dawning on him.

"You…you know."

"Yes."

"Have…have you told anyone?" Francoise fixed her coldest look on him.

"No, of course not, who do you think I am?" Her tone changed from icy to one of disgust.

"I'm not like you." She smirked, satisfied with the fact that he actually had the decency to look down from embarrassment. Then, her eyes softened, and took on a hurt expression.

"So, it's true then." She sighed, and looked up into the night sky.

"Francoise…I swear, I didn't mean to…it just happened…" His voice was shaky, words tumbling out of his mouth.

"Were…were you just leading me on then?" Francoise's voice had taken on a desperate, almost hysterical note, pleading for something she knew was impossible.

"No, I would never do that! Never…I may not be perfect, but I would never cheat on anyone…it's just, she happened…" He trailed off sounding sincerely sorry.

"Cynthia…"

_it never was and never will be_

_you're not real and you can't save me_

_somehow now you're everybody's fool _

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You like it? I know it's not very traditional, to write unhappy songs for the holidays, but I wanted to try this out. Plus, I've wanted to do a songfic for like, FOREVER!! To Vanessa, Daisy, Jen, Angela, and my new friend, Ashlee, you guys ROCK!! I hope you can take the time to read this, and I'm sorry I haven't read any of your fics… I've just been really busy. I promise I'll read and review all of them tomorrow, one of the few days of the year I don't hafta work!!! Oh and anyone who wants to be my friend, email me at , and I'll give you my AIM and YIM sn!! Although, they're both on my bio… Francoise and Joe seem to be too OOC, but I can't help it… It's like midnight on Christmas Eve, and I hafta go to bed. I'll post this up in the morning… HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! 


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